The New England Patriots placed the franchise tag on three-time Pro Bowl kicker Stephen Gostkowski yesterday. The team said in an unattributed statement that the move gives the sides more time to negotiate an agreement. If no deal is reached by July 15, the Patriots will pay Gostkowski $4.126 million in 2015. Gostkowski led the NFL in total points for the fourth time in 2014. He is the leading scorer in franchise history. The 2006 fourth-round draft pick was 35 of 37 on field goals this season – a 94.6 percentage that is the highest in Patriots history. He did not miss a kick in …

INDIANAPOLIS – General Manager Ryan Grigson said yesterday that the Colts had contacted NFL officials before last month’s AFC championship game about their concerns with New England’s game balls. Grigson did not say how the team was tipped off. Previous reports have indicated Indy first became suspicious after Mike Adams picked off two …

Former Pro Bowl linebacker Tedy Bruschi, who helped the New England Patriots win three Super Bowls before retiring in 2008, will appear in Concord on March 16 at 6 p.m. to raise money for the American Stroke Association. The location for the event, which will be hosted by local triathlete and fitness guru …

NORWOOD, Mass. – Malcolm Butler intercepted the delivery of Tom Brady’s new truck. Brady earned the prize for winning the Super Bowl MVP for the third time. He led the Patriots to a 28-24 victory over the Seattle …

BOSTON – Rob Gronkowski puck-tuated a Super Bowl victory with a spike on the ice. The star tight end and several of his New England Patriots teammates were honored by the Bruins before their game against the New …

NEW YORK – Seattle Seahawks linebacker Bruce Irvin was fined $10,000 by the NFL for his role in a scuffle with 18 seconds left in the Super Bowl. Three other players received lesser fines. Seattle defensive end Michael Bennett and New England Patriots tight ends Rob Gronkowski and …

NEW YORK – Bill Belichick will appear on CBS’s Late Show with David Letterman on Wednesday night. The New England coach led the Patriots to their fourth Super Bowl title Sunday night. He last visited Letterman in February …

The warehouse laborer in the Boston coffee shop, his voice as gravely as a back road, never tried to hide the doubt he once felt. Tom Brady, the superstar quarterback, once looked his age. The Patriots, the NFL’s …

BOSTON – Patriots quarterback Tom Brady said he “would love to” give the truck he got for winning his third Super Bowl MVP to defensive back Malcolm Butler. Butler made the game-saving interception at the goal line in …

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – New England Patriots special teams coach Scott O’Brien is retiring after 24 seasons in the NFL. Joe Judge will replace him. He had been O’Brien’s assistant since 2012. The team made the announcement yesterday, two days after the Patriots beat the Seattle Seahawks, 28-24, in …

PHOENIX – A classic comeback, a miracle catch, an epic blunder, a goal-line stand in the final seconds. Any one of those things by itself would have been the defining moment in a Super Bowl, but this game …

BOSTON – The Super Bowl celebration for New Englanders and their beloved Patriots will have to wait another day as Boston continues to get battered by heavy snow. Mayor Marty Walsh said the city will postpone a planned victory parade through downtown until tomorrow. He said the city …

PHOENIX – Julian Edelman passed a concussion test after a big hit in the Super Bowl appeared to leave him groggy, allowing him to continue and catch the winning touchdown a few minutes later, a person with knowledge …